Last Updated on June 4, 2022 by Kimberly Crawford
It is time for the holidays, and you might be wondering what to get all the people in your life. If your friends and family are a diverse group of people whose ages run the gamut from 1 to 90, shopping for them can be quite challenging. Fortunately, there are a few gifts you can get that are inexpensive, fun, and unique.
1. Streaming Service Gift Cards
Nowadays, everybody is glued to their computer and phone screens. Many people rely on streaming services for their entertainment and informational needs. Most people enjoy more than one streaming service, and this can be expensive.
Why not give the gift of a streaming service for a month, three months, or a year? A streaming service can be used by everyone in the family. Getting this service for a family will be less expensive than getting each of them a gift, yet it will save them money. It will be something that they can use every day.
Most streaming services have gift cards that you can buy in a grocery store. If there is a streaming service your friends have just been dying to try, you can buy them a card and fill it up with as many months as you care to give them. If they already have the service, they can still use the card to pay their bill.
Related: 30 Best Anniversary Gifts For Friends Online
2. Make Them a T-shirt
If you want to be truly original, you can always make your own gifts. No matter how old someone is, they will love getting something that was made just for them.
A t-shirt is an excellent gift whether you are buying for one person or an entire clan. There are companies online that will allow you to design your own t-shirt and sell it on an on-demand basis.
If you have a friend who is a movie buff, make them a shirt with an obscure reference to their favorite film. If they love their pets, make them a shirt with a picture of their favorite dog or cat.
People who follow a certain television show will love a shirt with a picture of their favorite character. Video game geeks love shirts with references to characters from a game.
You may have to get gifts for everyone in an office or club. You can make t-shirts with a company logo or the name of the club or create individual shirts that reward them for doing a great job. If you are having a big party, you can make souvenir t-shirts for all of your guests.
Related: 30 Best Gifts For Video Gamers
3. Create A Novelty Item Just for Them
Some of the same companies that will let you create your own t-shirts will also let you make novelty items. Make a mug with your face on it for your doting grandparents or a picture with the family crest for your tribe.
Do you have a great idea for an embroidered design but no time to embroider anything? Many on-demand printing companies also have sophisticated computerized sewing machines that can perfectly stitch a design you create.
All you have to do is upload your design onto their website and pick out the hat or handbag on which you would like your design to appear.
You may have seen people selling blankets with pictures of celebrities on them on street corners or at festivals. These blankets are very warm and luxurious, but you may have been put off by the fact that they have an enormous picture of a stranger on them.
Create a blanket with an image of something that is important to the gift recipient. They will think of you every time they make their bed or display it on their sofa or wall.
Related: 10 Unique Birthday Gifts for Mom
4. Send Them on Vacation
You may have an overwhelming number of people to buy gifts for at holiday time and a small budget that you have to stick to. However, some people in everyone’s life deserve an extra special present. Paying for a weekend getaway or even a staycation is a great way to show the most important people in your life how much you care.
A weekend away makes the perfect gift for a young couple who is just starting out. If you are buying gifts for a family with young children, they may enjoy a weekend at an amusement park/ resort such as Disneyland.
Some people save for a long time to take a vacation and never actually go on their trip. If you cannot afford to pay for their entire vacation, you might be able to pay for a part of it. Think about providing a gift certificate to an airline or hotel. Websites like Priceline and Airbnb sell gift certificates.
You can always pay for a staycation. Treat your friend to an afternoon of museums, fun attractions, and shopping. You should be able to put together a little staycation by just going online.
Tickets to a play and dinner at a fancy restaurant can make the perfect escape for an individual, couple, or family who cannot normally afford such luxuries.
Related: 30 Best One-Year Anniversary Gifts For Girlfriend
5. Dinner and a Show
Tickets to the theater make a fabulous gift. Most people do not go to see live theater as often as they would like. Unless you follow touring companies or keep up with Broadway schedules, you may not know when a new show is in town until you hear about it on closing night. There are quite a few family-friendly plays that are produced around holiday time.
If you check the theatre schedules in the town where your gift recipient is located, you can find some really exciting and imaginative shows. Take a friend to see a play and head for a meal or simply give them a gift certificate to a theatrical ticket vendor website.
Dinner in a nice restaurant is almost mandatory after seeing a play. Restaurants located in theater districts often offer discounts to theatergoers. Some theaters will even offer bundles with local restaurants when you buy tickets to a show.
Related: 74 Unique Anniversary Gifts For Him
6. Gift Baskets
One thing that people young and old love is a good gift basket. Food is always a popular option. Companies like Harry and David and 1-800-Baskets, offer a wide variety of food combinations.
You can get a sweet assortment, a salty assortment, or a combination of the two. There are some companies that will send baskets with everything you need to make a full meal.
There are gift baskets for almost everything you can imagine. You can buy perfume, scented candles, or hot sauce. There are board game baskets that can be enjoyed by the whole family.
There are some people who are rather fussy and there are some families that may want a basket with many different things in it. In this case, simply create your own basket.
You can fill the basket with everything from candy bars to gourmet fruits, vegetables, and beverages. You can make a basket filled with gift cards, books, and travel games that will make the next road trip a breeze.
If you are buying for a family that does not have much money, you may want to create a basket full of items for basic needs, such as hygiene products are food staples.
You can obtain a basket and a bow from any crafts store and fill it with the things the gift recipient loves. If you are shopping for a family, remember to include treats that everyone will love. When you create a basket, you will save money, and the person who unwraps it will be thrilled with everything inside.
Related: 6 Creative Holiday Gifts That Mean Something
7. Food Delivery Coupons
When a household consists of people of many different ages, they may not always agree on what to have for dinner. The adults may want pasta with pesto, and the kids might be thinking more along the lines of grilled cheese sandwiches, french fries, and chocolate cake for dessert. This is one of the reasons food delivery services are popular.
Nowadays, there is a multitude of food delivery services. A delivery person can bring any kind of food you would like to your home. Most of these services are fairly pricey, so a coupon would be a very welcome treat. This is a convenient product to buy, and you can obtain it in any grocery store. It is something that the whole family is sure to enjoy.
Related: Christmas gifts: Personalized Christmas Gifts from Recycled Tins
8. Gag Gifts
In some cases, you may not have enough money to buy someone an actual gift. However, you can always look for a gift that will give the recipient a laugh.
If you are looking for a gag gift that can be enjoyed by the whole family, you can go to a novelty store. You will find things such as the smallest violin in the world, emergency underpants, or emergency drinking water.
Silly but educational gifts are also fun for families, such as a Shakespearean insult poster or a year’s worth of Mad Libs. You can get the whole family slippers that look like baguettes or hotdogs or a fork that extends and lets them steal food off of other people’s plates.
Related: 30 Best Gifts For The Whole Family Bring Happiness
9. Unusual Gadgets
Almost everyone relies on technology these days. Everything that is important to us is stored on our phones, and we go everywhere with the assistance of a GPS. There are even some forms of currency that don’t exist in real life. The latest technology is something that everyone wants to own. There are a few new products out there that are sure to be popular with the young and old.
People who rely on technology during the day often also rely on it to get a good night’s sleep. People have been using sound machines for quite a while now, but there is a new product called a Dodow. This device looks like a sound machine but actually uses light to help you fall asleep. It is said that the metronome-light that it emits makes you forget your worries and will help you fall asleep in 8 minutes or less.
If you are worried about the safety of a loved one walking home late at night, there are tiny keychains that emit an extremely loud recording of a person’s own voice. It is certain to scare away any predators.
The Quest 2 offers the latest in VR technology. You can use this amazing headset for playing hundreds of games, watching concerts and movies, or even just hanging out and socializing. It can also be a way to stay in shape because there are many exercise classes loaded onto the device.
More gift ideas:
- 30 Best Gifts For Video Gamers
- 5 Ideas For The Best Groomsmen Gifts
- 30 Best Gifts For Law Students (Buying Guide)
- 30 Best Gifts For PhD Students (Buying Guide)
- 30 Best First Communion Gifts For Boys
- Gifting Flowers Online: Here Are The Top Mistakes To Avoid
Get Them A Collectors Item
Some people are not into technology and would rather read a good book. Why not get that person a copy of their favorite book or a rare book by their favorite author? If they are more into rock and roll than reading, you can always just find them a rare album.
Vintage or antique gifts might appreciate in value over time. If a person should ever get tired of the particular book or album that you gave to them, they can always sell it and get good money. They can also pass it along to their children.
You can also get people souvenirs of things that are popular today that they can sell in the future. Items such as t-shirts from movies with cult followings, unusual campaign buttons from politicians, and figurines from popular movies might be worth quite a bit of money in the not-so-distant future.
Finding the perfect gift can be challenging. If You use your imagination and take a little time, you can find a fun gift that the recipient will love. When you give someone the perfect gift, they will remember you forever, and they will feel just a little bit obligated to get you something fantastic as well.